Tools for assembling retaining rings on shafts, pins or the like



Nov.` 1, 1950 H. ERDMANN 2,958,123

TooLs FOR ASSEMBLING RETAINING RINGS ON SHAFTS, PINS OR THE LIKE Filed June 16, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 N N INVENToR.

HANS ERDMANN ATTO RNEY Nov. 1, 1960 H. ERDMANN 2,958,123 TooLs FOR ASSEMBLING RETAINING RINGS oN sHAFTs, PINS 0R THE LIKE Filed June 1e, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 v INVENToR. HANS E RD MANN ATTORNEY Nov. l, 1960 H. ERDMANN TooLs FOR ASSEMELING RETAINING RINGS ON SHAFTS, PINS OR THE LIKE 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed June 16, 1958 FIG.,

INVENToR. HANS ERDMANN BY ab ATTORNEY Nov. l, 1960 H. ERDMANN 2,958,123

TOOLS FOR ASSEMBLING RETAINING RINGS ON SHAFTS, PINS OR THE LIKE Filed June 1e, 195s 4 sheets-sheet 4 FIG. 8

INVENTOR. HA N5 ERM@ ATTORNEY United States Patent() TOOLS FOR ASSEMBLING RETAINING RINGS ON SHAFTS, PINS OR THE LIKE Hans lilrdmann, Maplewood, NJ., assgnor to Waldes Kohinoor, Inc., Long Island City, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed June 16, 1958, Ser. No. 742,135

4 Claims. (Cl. 29--229) This invention relates to improvements in tools for assembling retaining rings on shafts, pins and the like, and more particularly to an improved combination retaining-ring dispensing and applying tool, sometimes called a ring applicator, of the type disclosed in my prior applications Serial No. 508,264, filed May 13, 1955, and Serial No. 538,041, led `October 3, 19'55 (now abandoned), whose subjects-matter have been incorporated into my vcontinuation-in-part application Serial No. 792,160,1iiled IFebruary 9, 1959.

Retaining-ring dispensing and applying tools according to my aforesaid applications are in common characterized by an applicator blade having a substantially semi-circular ring-receiving cut-out which opens through its front edge whereby it is adapted to fork a ring being assembled, which cut-out is normally closed or backed on one side by a retractible slide, and by a iiexible stack rod extending toward the open side of the ring cut-out for holding a lplurality of open retaining rings to be assembled in stack 'formation and for feeding the rings one at a time to` die Acut-out responsively to assembly of the endmost ring" of the stack in a shaft groove. More particularly, such 'a stack rod has its end adjacent the cut-out free to ex responsive to movement of the tool toward the shaft, as necessary to an assembly operation being unimpeded by the lower rings of the stack. Moreover, with a .tool as disclosed in my later iiled aforesaid application Serial No. 538,041, it was assumed that there was always present and available a fixed abutment disposed at a proper level relative to Vthe. groove of the shaft and having the requisite radial dimension as to be engaged by the front edge of the slide as the applicator tool Amoves relatively toward the shaft during each ring assembly operation, such abutment being provided by the fixture mounting the shaft for the assembly operation or by the machine part mounted on the Yshaft and which is to ,be axially located thereon by the shoulder formed by' the assembled retaining ring.

`vj-.I-lowever, difficulties wereencountered where reliance was placed on the machine part providing the abutment as aforesaid,` because in numerous applications the radial dimension thereof was substantially greater than the permissible retracting movement of the slide which is limited by the relatively short length of the working end or portion of the applicator blade. 11n such cases, it wasnecessary to provide a recess in the outer portion of the side face of the machine part, the inner edge of which served as an abutment edge for the slider. However, such practice was Yopen to the objection that the provision of the recess not only required an additional machining operation, but also the operation of assembling a ring onthe shaft required a precise angular relation of the parts difficult to achieve under the `usual Working conditions. f

-Statedbroadly, the invention contemplates and aims to provide a combination retaining-ring dispensing and applyingtool for assembling Vsuch retaining rings on grooved shafts, Apins or .the like featuring a retracting slide Patented Nov. l, 1960 Fice and flexible stack rod as used in the tools disclosed in my aforesaid prior applications, but which is characterized in that the retracting movement of the slide in no wise depends on the slide abutting the shaft-holding xture or the machine part to be located on the shaft by the ring being assembled.

More particularly, an object of the invention is to provide a combination ring dispensing and applying tool for assembling open retaining rings on shafts, pins or the like in a position immediately adjacent the machine part to be located thereon by the lring being assembled, thereby to avoid end play between machine part and ring, and which is eifective regardless of the radial dimension of said machine part.

Another important object of the invention is the provision of a combination ring dispensing and applying tool as aforesaid which, while employing the retracting slide feature of my prior tools, is nevertheless so constructed and arranged that the slide partakes of its retracting movement responsively to -ilexng movement of the stack rod, as results from engagement of one or more of the lower rings of the stack thereof disposed above the ring being assembled with the shaft as the tool moves toward the latter in carrying out a ring-assembly operation.

A more detailed object of the invention is the provision, in a combination retaining-ring dispensing and applying tool as aforesaid, of a slide suitably constructed and mounted so as to ably and effectively carry out its novel operation as intended by the present invention.

The above and other objects and features of advantagey V:Figs 3, 4 and 5 are broken-away part-sectional plan views, on an enlarged scale, of the working part of the tool according to the invention, showing three stages of its operation in assembling a ring in its shaft groove, of which Pig. 3 shows the tool approaching the shaft and gliding over the end face of a machine part located immediately adjacent the shaft groove, Fig. 4 shows the ring about half-way assembled in its groove and with the slide'partially retracted, and Fig. 5 shows the ring fully inserted in its shaft groove and the slide fully retracted relative to the applicator blade;

Figs. 6, 7 and 8 are vertical sections corresponding to Figs. 3-5, respectively, of which iFig. 6' is a section taken along oset section line 6 6 of IFig. 3, !Fig. 7 is a section taken along line 77 of Fig. 4, and Fig. 8 is a section taken along line l8-8 of Fig. l5; and

iFigs 94112 are, respectively, top, side, bottom and front or head-on views of the working portion of the applicator blade and slide which illustrate in detail the construction and arrangement thereof.

Referring to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals denote like parts throughout the several views, a tool of the invention illustratively comprises as its basic elements a frame 10, a stack rod `15, an applicator' blade 20, and a retractible slide 30. As best seen in Fig. 2, the frame 10 comprises a body part 11 in the form of a horizontally elongated, verticallygdisposed main wall, `and top and bottom walls 12, 1,3 extending to one side (forwardly) therefrom and terminating in oppositely reaching side flanges 12a and 13a. The frame 10 which is thus channel-shaped is adapted to serve as a tool handle and preferably the forward end of its top wall 12 terminates in a thumb rest 14 which facilitates the t frame being manually grasped and handled.

Secured to the under side of the handle top wall 12 is a stack-rod mounting bracket 16 preferably in the form of a strip arranged on edge and being secured along its top edge, the aforesaid stack rod i15 being affixed to the lower edge of the bracket 16. As is now well known in the art, the stack rod 15 is adapted to dispose a plurality of open retaining rings R to be assembled in orderly stack formation and uniformly oriented so that the gaps between the open ends of the rings always face or open towards the front or workpiece side of the tool. As seen in Figs. 3-5, such rings are usually provided along their inner edges with a middle and two end lugs or projections whose arcuate inner edges define the effective inner edge of the ring. It is also to be noted that the stack rod 15, as is conventional, comprises a spring strip or rail having width corresponding substantially to the inner-edge diameter of the arcuate bodies of the rings R. Thus, when a plurality of such rings are threaded on to the stack rod 15 as shown, they are held against lateral separation therefrom by their end lugs, but they are of course free to move axially along the stack rod.

In the illustrated tool, the relatively forward end of the stack rod 15 is bent to extend downwardly and substantially at -a right angle to its rail-attached horizontal portion, and it terminates just short of the working end 21 of the applicator blade which is horizontally disposed. The lower-end portion of the stack rod is free of securement and, being of flexible spring metal, it is free to ex relatively rearwardly a limited amount when rings thereon disposed above the lowermost or endmost ring then -being assembled engage the shaft during the assembly operation, whereby said lower rings do not impede in any way the requisite movement of the tool to its full assembly position with respect to the shaft. To effect a positive feed of the rings of the stack thereof disposed on the stack rod toward the applicator blade 20, ring-feeding means are provided, such comprising a follower slide 17 engaged with and slidable along the stack rod in manner similar to the rings R, said slide being urged in direction as to feed the rings toward the free or applicator-blade end of the stack rod by means of a tension spring 18 reactive between the slide and a fixed point on the handle 10. To insure that the spring exerts substantially uniform pressure on the ring stack irrespective of the amount of its distention, it is preferably formed extra-long and it is extended over an idler roll 19, which arrangement gives the spring elongated U-coniiguration.

The applicator blade 20 is also carried by the handleforming tool frame 10 as by atxing one end thereof to the upper surface of the frame bottom wall 13 adjacent the forward end of the latter. From its xed end, the blade slopes downwardly and then emerges into its aforesaid horizontal working portion 21 which extends immediately below the free end of the stack rod 15. Thus, the free or working end of the stack rod and the working portion 21 of the applicator blade have rightangular relationship generally as shown. By reference to Figs. 9-12, it will be seen that the working portion of the applicator blade is of bifurcated construction providing two laterally spaced, longitudinally extending arms 22a, 22b, and in the illustrated blade the space between said arms is closed by a bottom wall 23 aflixed by welding or otherwise to the under sides of said arms. The forward edge of said bottom wall 23 is curved so as t define a substantially semi-circular ring-receiving recess 24 opening through the front end of the applicator blade, the edge of which forms a ring-pushing edge which at least in its middle portion is deepened as by a longitudinal strip-form shim 23a secured as by riveting to the under face of the bottom wall.

The aforesaid side arms 22a, 22h of the blade extend along the sides of the cut-out 24, and one arm 221; reaches forwardly thereof and is shaped to provide a tool-to-groove guide finger 25 disposed at the level of said cut-out. The other arm 22a is shown to terminate at its forward end in an inclined end edge 26 which has minimum spacing from the guide finger end of the companion side arm 22h at least equal to the outer-edge diameter of the rings R being assembled. The under surface of the arm adjacent said edge 26 is undercut or relieved to provide an under-face recess which is also disposed at the level of the cut-out, said recess terminating rearwardly in an inclined edge 26a which is parallel to and spaced from the edge 26 the approximate depth of the shoulder which an assembled ring forms on the shaft to which it is assembled. Thus, the end construction of the applicator lblade as shown is substantially that disclosed and claimed in my prior application Serial No. 721,478, filed March 14, 1958, whereby the aforesaid guide finger 25, when projected into the groove of a shaft, serves to pilot the tool to the shaft at a level such that a ring disposed in the cut-out 24 will move therefrom directly into said groove, and whereby, upon completion of the ring-assembly operation, the tool may be backed olf from the shaft in an inclined direction which enables the inner end of the guide linger to clear the just-assembled ring rather than abutting the same.

The aforesaid retractible slide 30 mounted on the working end of the applicator blade illustratively comprises a top plate of U-configuration providing two spaced arm portions 31, 32 which extend forwardly from a middle portion 33, said top plate overlying and being supported on the arms 22a, 22h of the applicator blade and further extending over the side edges of said applicator-blade `arms and thence inwardly as in-bent under flanges 34, 35. By reference to Fig. 12 in particular, it will be seen that said in-bent iianges 34, 35 extend in opposite directions across the under face of the applicatorblade bottom wall 23 to approximately the shim 23a carried by said bottom wall, and thus the shim acts as a longitudinal key for the slide as a whole. Also, as best seen in Figs. 3 and 9, said in-bent flanges 34, 35 are adapted, in the forward or active position of the slide 30, to in etfect form a bottom wall for the cut-out 24 of the applicator blade, from which position, by virtue of its slidable mounting on said applicator blade, the slide is free to retract a limited amount in rearward direction. And from Figs. 3-5 in particular, it will be noted that the inner side edges of the arm portions 31, 32 and the forward edge of the middle portion 33 of the slide top-plate define a generally rectangular, forwardly facing opening therein which is wide and deep enough to accommodate rings R of the stack thereof disposed on the stack rod 15.

As earlier forecast herein, retracting movement of the slide 30, rather than depending on the slide abutting a shaft-holding fixture or the machine part to be held as heretofore, is in response to rearward flexing movement of the stack rod 15. For this purpose, slide top plate to the rear of its aforesaid ring-stack opening is formed with an upright flange or finger 37, and it will be ob.

served that the front face of said finger is normally spaced from the rear face of the stack rod 15 a distance corresponding substantially to the radius of the rings disposed on the stack rod, with the result that the finger 37 is positioned so as to be engaged by the outer edges of a few of the lower rings on the stack which move as the stack rod liexes. Normally, the slide is positioned in its aforesaid forward or active position (Figs. 3 and 9) by means of a leaf spring 38 having one end axed to the handle frame 10 and its free end bearing against the rear face of the finger 37 so as to bias the slide in forward direction.

Briey explaining the operation of a tool as described in the foregoing, with reference being had to Figs. 3-8 illustrating in plan and in section three different stages of a ring-assembling operation, it will rst be noted that the stack of rings on the stack rod is normally bottomed by thein-bent bottom or under flanges 34, 35 of the slide 30 which is held in its normal active or forward position by means of the leaf spring 38. In this normal position ofthe parts, the lowermost ring R of the stack is disposed in the assembly-readiness position within the cut-out 24 of the applicator blade 20. In Figs. 3 Vand 6 it is as- -sumed that the tool is moving on to a shaft S in whose groove g the ring R in the aforesaid assembly-readiness position is to be assembled, thus to provide an artificial shoulder for ia machine part M to be located on said shaft without any end play. It will be observed that the tool, held at a slight inclination, is free to glide over the end face of the machine part M immediately adjacent the groove g, as follows from the fact that the retracting movement of the slide in nowise depends on the abutment of its front end edge with the machine part. In other words, the tool may move freely against the shaft without regard to the radial dimension of the machine part.

Referring next to Figs. 4 and 7, it will be seen therefrom that the tool has moved forwardly relative to shaft S the amount required to partially seat the aforesaid ring R in the assembly-readiness position in its shaft groove g. It will be noted that movement of tool on shaft has progressed to the extent that a few of the rings next above the ring being assembled have moved against the portion of the shaft periphery extending above the shaft groove g, and that said rings, acting as fixed push links on the stack rod, have caused the lower end thereof to flex a limited amount in rearward direction. Consequent to this flexing movement, a plurality of the next higher rings of the stack, more particularly those at the level of t-he slide finger 37, are positively moved rearwardly and impart corresponding rearward or retracting movement to the slide 30, the views under discussion showing that the slide has partaken of a small amount of rearward movement.

Referring to Figs. 5 and 8 which illustrate the relation of parts with the ring fully assembled on and before retraction of the tool from the shaft S, here it will be s'een that the lower end of the stack rod has been flexed a substantial distance in rearward direction and that such movement has resulted in corresponding rearward movement of the slide 30 along the length of the applicator blade to its full inactive position.

Although not illustrated, it will be understood that as the tool is backed olf from the shaft following completion of a ring yassembly operation, the stack rod 15 returns to its normal position in which it moves the ring stack to axial alignment with the cut-out 24, as results in the previously next endmost ring dropping into the cut-out, wherein it now assumes the assembly-readiness position. This movement of the stack rod is accompanied by return movement of the slide 30, under the bias of leaf spring 38, to its active position in which its bottom flanges 34, 35 re-close the bottom side of the cut-out, thus not only to prevent the ring moving into the assembly-readiness position therein from dropping through the cut-out, but also to bottom the entire ring stack, as in Figs. 3 and 6.

Without further analysis, it will be appreciated that a ring dispensing and applying tool as aforesaid achieves in simple yet effective manner the objectives of the invention as explained in the foregoing. More particularly, although using the desirable retractible slide feature of the tools of my prior applications aforesaid, a tool of the invention overcomes the objections and limitations of the prior tools resulting from the requirement thereof that retracting movement of the slide be obtained by engagement of its front end with an abutment such as a shaftholding fixture or the machine part to be located on the shaft. Instead, the present invention the flexing movement of the stack rod, which occurs during each assembly operation, to retract the slide and thus movement of the slide is not only greatly facilitated, but also is made possible without any precise machining or dimensioning of the machine part to obtain such 'slidemoVethe scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the foregoing description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

l. A tool for dispensing open retaining rings and for applying them to grooved shafts, pins and the like, comprising, in combination, an applicator blade and a stack rod for maintaining a plurality of the open rings to be assembled in column formation and uniformly oriented with respect to one another and being operatively connected to the applicator blade in such manner that the tool is |actuable to apply a ring to a groove `solely by bodily movement of the blade together with the stack rod relatively -toward and away from the shaft to which the ring is to be assembled, said applicator blade having a substantially semi-circular ring-receiving cut-out in its working-end portion which opens through the end edge thereof, lat least a portion of the stack rod being disposed substantially at a right angle to the applicator blade and extending axially toward and terminating just short of said cutout, means for securing a portion of the stack rod remote from said cut-out to said applicator blade, the end of said stack rod adjacent the cut-out being free of securement and of flexible construction whereby it can flex rearwardly when force is applied thereto by some of the rings thereon being pushed rearwardly by the shaft on which ring assembly is being effected consequent to movement of the tool toward the shaft, ya retractible slide mounted on the working end of the applicator blade and having a normal active position in which it closes the side of the cut-out opposite that towards which the stack rod extends, and means including a part on said slide extending into the path of at least one ring of the stack thereof so disposed on the stack rod `as to move rearwardly with said stack rod as it fiexes in rearward direction for causing said slide to retract rearwardly along the lapplicator blade in accordance with rearward flexing of the stack rod.

2. A tool substantially as defined in claim l, wherein said slide part comprises an upright finger projecting from the slide into the path of movement of certain of the rings disposed on ythe stack rod land which move therewith as the stack rod flexes rearwardly as aforesaid.

3. A tool substantially as defined in claim l, wherein the slide has inverted U-section and is formed with bottom flanges extending inwardly from the side `legs of the U whereby it slidably embraces the applicator blade, the upper wall of the slide having an opening therein to accommodate the stack rod and the rings of the stack thereof which are disposed generally at the level of the slide and said bottom flanges thereof normally serving to close the underside of the cut-out, 1and wherein said slide part comprises a finger-like projection extending from the rear edge of said slide opening into the path of movement of one or more of the rings of the stack thereof which moves rearwardly with the stack rod as it flexes as aforesaid.

4. A tool for dispensing open retaining rings and for applying them to grooved shafts, pins `and the like and being actuable solely by bodily movement of the tool toward and away from the shaft, comprising, in combination, an applicator blade having la substantially semicircular ring-receiving cut-out in its working-end portion which opens through the end edge thereof, a stack rod at least a portion of which is disposed substantially at a right angle to the applicator blade and extends toward and terminates just short of said cut-out for maintaining a plurality of open retaining rings to be assembled in substantially coaxial alignment with one another and with said out-out and for holding said rings uniformly oriented so that their openings face in the same direction as the cutout, the end of the stack rod remote from the cut-out being rigid with the applicator blade and the end of said stack adjacent the cut-out being free of securement and of flexible construction whereby it can ex rearwardly when force is applied thereto by some of the rings thereon being pushed rearwardly by the shaft on which ring assembly is being efected consequent to movement of the tool toward ythe shaft, a retractible slide mounted on the working end of the Aapplicator blade `and having a normal active position in which it closes the side of the 'cut-out opposite that towards which the stack rod extends, spring means normally biasing the slide to the active position aforesaid, and means on said slide disposed in the path References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,073,280 Owen Sept. 16, 1913 1,596,698 Miller Aug. 17, 1926 2,781,515 Juilfs Feb. 19, 1957 

